Confessions of the Mistreated: A DDLC FanFiction
by CGPH
Summary: What started as a simple movie night between friends becomes darker than either side expected. But as the rain clouds loom overhead, Yuri has an umbrella.


" _I'm sure she won't be done yet,"_ Yuri hoped to herself, re-entering her bedroom.

As luck had it, Natsuki was still in the shower. Yuri made her way over to the bed quickly and lay down a bundle of clean pajamas, something which she was supposed to do half an hour previously but had gotten distracted.

She and Natsuki were having another sleepover tonight. Although the Literature Club still often brought out the worst in their creative differences, truth be told, the two had rapidly become close friends. Yuri's logic on it was it was good the two could be as brutally honest as they were with each other and yet maintain a good bond. It didn't make the arguing any easier, but it did mean they had a stronger friendship than most. Yuri didn't have many friends she saw outside the club, but Natsuki (if anyone) would definitely qualify as one of them.

Natsuki herself had arrived at Yuri's an hour previous and after joining her family for dinner, had opted to hop in the shower before their movie. Yuri had neglected to warn her, however, that the lock on her private bathroom had been smashed a few years ago, and she hadn't yet gotten around to fixing it.

After placing Natsuki's fresh clothes out on her bed, she turned to make her way back to the living room. As she walked past, her eyes floated, absent-mindlessly, over to the bathroom.

The door had drifted open a few inches, and through the reflection of the bathroom mirror she caught a glimpse of Natsuki drying herself with a towel.

Yuri skidded to a halt.

The realization of what she had just done began to dawn on her, and she found herself blushing furiously.

What if Natsuki had been looking in her direction and thought she was peeping? She would never make a conscious decision to do that, it was an accident! She didn't even like girls that way! And even if she did, she respected her friend and would never perv on her! It must have been a combination of her absent mind and being in the comfort of her own home that had caused her eyes to snake their way through the gap for a glance.

But that wasn't even what was concerning her the most. There was something else, something she definitely shouldn't have seen.

She had just committed an utter and complete breach of privacy and owed it to her friend to pretend that hadn't happened. It was Natsuki's responsibility to come to her about that, and definitely not Yuri's place to comment on.

But on the other hand, her rising anxiety told her different...

Yuri swallowed, feeling a lump begin to form in her throat.

"Yanno your bathroom lock is broke, right?" Natsuki's high pitched voice joined the room, startling her.

"Owaaa!" Yuri's hand shot up into her hair line and began twirling a loose lock. Natsuki stood in the doorway, wrapped in a towel and picking at the wobbly handle.

"I-I-I'm sorry... Something h-happened a few years ago and we had to break it, I h-haven't really gotten it fixed since then... I-is that okay?"

Natsuki's attention dropped from the door and she made her way over the clothes Yuri had left out.

"You really think these will fit me?" she inspected the pajamas.

There was a jarring height difference between the two girls, with the top of Natsuki's head barely reaching Yuri's shoulder. Between that and… _other…_ size differences, one of Yuri's shirts would look like a lengthy dress on the smaller girl.

"They are my little sisters, so I was hoping so."

Natsuki frowned at her.

"What's up with you?" She picked up at Yuri's stuttering, "You're all jittery."

"I-I don't-I…"

Yuri caught her words. She swallowed her rising anxieties, took a breath and began again.

"Sorry, I'm fine. You startled me, is all."

"Uh-huh," Natsuki eyed her suspiciously. "So what movie are we watching?"

"A horror movie."

Natsuki noisily pouted.

Yuri rolled her eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, it's not a scary one."

"But I don't like horror…" she mumbled.

"It's hardly scary horror, it's from the eighties. There's not even any jump-scares, it simply sets up a creepy atmosphere."

She knew that wasn't entirely true, and that the movie did in fact have a few surprising jump-scares, but it would be easier to apologize to Natsuki later than try to convince her now.

"Can't we just watch something fun? Like a musical or something?"

"I do have Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, if you'd prefer?"

"Kinda feel we have different opinions on what we class as _fun_ , Yuri."

"Well…" Yuri rolled her eyes. "I don't really have anything particularly light-hearted... But I own some romantic films?"

"Like what?"

"Pride and Prejudice... Titanic… hmmm… Oh, The Notebook?"

"Again, _getting_ the impression we're not on the same page about what _fun_ is," she sneered.

Yuri waved her off.

"I'm sure you'll find the movie I picked out adequate. I did make the decision with your preference in mind, after all."

Natsuki huffed, but didn't argue further.

"Well, go put it on then, I guess," she crossed her arms, "I'll be down in a sec."

Yuri took that as her cue to leave. After nodding politely, she made her way out of the room, albeit noticeably quicker than usual.

* * *

With the help of some incense, Yuri's mansion had become jasmine scented, which complemented the glow of the setting sun perfectly. The air in the house was thick and warmth, creating a level of coziness.

As Yuri busied herself around in the living room, trying as she was, she couldn't help but get drawn back to the image of Natsuki she'd seen in the bathroom mirror. She knew it was definitely not her place to mention it, but at the same time, she knew if she didn't, she'd have it permanently nagging away at her. And even if she _was_ able to pretend she hadn't seen it, the fact that Natsuki…

that she knew…

Natsuki was…

A wave of dizziness swept over her. Life suddenly seemed a lot more real.

With the knowledge she had, she now had a responsibility. A responsibility to Natsuki as her friend, but also a responsibility to herself, if she ever wanted to look at herself properly in the mirror again. Yuri preferred her drama printed in ink and between the covers of a book; never did she imagine she'd find herself in a situation like this.

She cursed herself for not realizing it sooner.

For once, this was a subject perhaps she _should_ have been overthinking about. As more and more pieces of the puzzle began to fit together, Yuri felt her anxiety stalking in the shadows.

Natsuki was over-protective about her interests and had a short temper when feeling threatened. Not to mention hiding her possessions in the classroom, or the times she would get light-headed and insist she just had low blood-sugar. All of the warning signs were there, and if any of them had stopped and actually looked and saw Natsuki for who she was then they would have realized. They would have realized and they could have done something about it. But they didn't, and now Yuri had the enormity of this baring down on only her.

As much as she wished it was, this wasn't something she could afford to be shy about.

Before she had time to gather her thoughts, she was greeted by the tiny patter of footprints.

"Natsuki!" Yuri half-shouted.

Natsuki stopped in her tracks, alarmed.

"What?"

"Are you okay?"

Natsuki looked around, bewildered.

"Yes…?"

Maybe Yuri needed to be a little more specific.

"I… I…" she struggled to find her wording.

"Yuri, what is up with you?" Natsuki cocked a hip, scanning her friend up and down. "You look like you've seen a ghost... and we haven't even started watching the movie yet!"

"I… Sorry, I didn't…"

For a moment, Natsuki looked frustrated. Then, when Yuri's condition became obvious to her, that expression swapped to concern.

"Yuri…?"

Yuri's hand shot to her chest as she attempted to control her breathing.

"Do you like, want a glass of water, or something?" she offered

Yuri shook her head, and instead made towards the couch to sit down. After a few seconds of heavy breathing she patted the space next to her, gesturing for Natsuki.

"What's up, dude?" Natsuki took a seat beside her friend.

"I didn't mean to, I promise," she said quietly.

Natsuki squinted, struggling to catch the girls words.

"Didn't mean to… do what?" she asked cautiously.

"The d-door, it was open when I was dropping your pajamas off a-and… a-and, and I saw… I saw…" Yuri's words grew quieter and quieter until barely a whisper, and when she found herself no longer to continue, she lifted her hand, pointing to Natsuki's body.

Natsuki's face slowly changed from her brow creasing in confusion, to her eyes widening in realization, to finally her nostrils flaring in anger.

It took a moment for Natsuki to settle on words. She pushed out a hard breath.

"Not. Cool. Dude."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to! I would never… It was…"

Yuri was hoping Natsuki would jump in and explain, but the girl had simply closed her eyes and appeared to be ignoring her.

When it became obvious she wasn't going to get an answer, Yuri continued.

"What I mean is… are you okay? How did you get…?"

Natsuki's voice was sudden and harsh.

"How the _fuck_ do you think I got them?"

Yuri began frantically tugging at her hair again.

"I'm s-sorrry I didn't mean to…."

Natsuki pushed herself off the sofa and pointed an accusing finger Yuri.

"What the hell, Yuri!? Why you gotta go digging into people's business like that? You have no place to judge anyone for what goes on at home!"

Yuri blushed hard, and found herself subconsciously clawing at her sleeve.

"I wasn't judging! _Please_ , don't get defensive, I don't want to make this about that!"

"Then what!? Huh? You're so smart, it doesn't take a genius to figure it out, so why bring it up!? Did you not think maybe that's not something I'd want to talk about?"

"I'm sorry, I just-"

"Yeah, well, you should be. You just ruined this night for me! Forget the movie, I'm going bed."

Natsuki stormed out, causing Yuri to suddenly to call after her. Thankfully Yuri's parents had left the house after dinner, allowing the two to have their shouting match undisturbed. Natsuki stopped instantly in her tracks, something which was almost as out of character for her as Yuri shouting was.

"Please, I wasn't judging you! I just wanted to talk…" Yuri leaned forward.

"Talk about what? What is there to talk about? Yeah, okay!?" Natsuki threw her arms up. "I get into fights sometimes! You happy now?!"

"You're my friend and I care about you," she pleaded. "It wouldn't be right if I didn't other my help!"

"If you cared about me so much you wouldn't have ruined this night for me by bringing it up!"

"I'm sorry! Just please, come, sit back down. We don't have to talk about it, I'm sorry. So long as you know that you can talk about it if you want, we don't have to."

After a second of hesitation, Natsuki huffed and sat back on the sofa, noticeably further away from Yuri than she was earlier.

"Just play the movie."

Yuri obeyed.

She didn't have to force Natsuki to talk to her, she just needed to let her friend know she had someone to turn to. She didn't need to push it anymore, she had done her job.

After clicking Play on the DVD remote, tucked her legs under herself and pretended to watch the movie.

The opening credits hadn't yet ended before Yuri could hear Natsuki sniffing from the other side of the sofa. Her eyes dared a glance. Natsuki had pulled her knees up to her face and was doing her best to resist crying. Seeing the normally aggressive girl in such a state tugged on Yuri's conscience.

Natsuki may have been getting defensive, but her accusation was correct. They had planned to have a nice evening together, and Yuri's interfering had ruined it, even if she did have good intentions.

Yuri reached out a hand.

" _Don't_ touch me."

Yuri's hand froze, but didn't retreat.

"Natsuki…"

Natsuki lifted her face up, and her attempts at trying to hide back tears failed.

"What?"

Yuri couldn't think of what to say. Did she offer comfort? Reassurance? Or obey her wishes and leave her alone?

Yuri settled her hand down on Natsuki's knee, an act which made the girl instinctively flinch. The pain in Yuri's stomach twisted deeper.

"I'm sorry."

"Please…" Tears freely strolled down Natsuki's cheeks, "...don't tell…"

Yuri shook her head.

"I won't. You can talk to me, I won't tell anyone."

Natsuki let out a forced laugh, and roughly brushed her sleeve against her face.

"I meant if you tell anyone you saw me crying, I'll kill you."

Yuri nodded, and slid in closer to the crying girl.

"I promise. I'm here for you."

"Ugh!" Natsuki swatted Yuri's hand from her knee. "You don't gotta say it like that! That's exactly what I mean! I hate mushy stuff, I don't want anyone's sympathy!"

Natsuki still had her defenses up, but seemed a lot more fragile than when she was shouting. It shouldn't have done, but it gave Yuri the confidence enough to regain her composure and lead the conversation.

"I'm not giving you sympathy. Natsuki, I care about you. And after everything that happened to Sayori… If you're being hurt, and nobody is aware of it, then of course I want to help. _Does_ anybody know about it? The teachers, or social services, I mean?"

Natsuki shook her head.

"I-it doesn't always happen, it's j-just… sometimes, when my dad drinks he becomes a real dick and… It's not like I'm being _abused_ , or anything… we just fight sometimes…"

"No parent should ever harm their child," Yuri said firmly. "That _is_ abuse Natsuki, no matter the extent."

Natsuki cleaned her fists.

"It's not abuse… he's barely even ever around! It's mutual, we both shout at each other and we both hit each other!"

"I see…" Yuri nodded, "so, you start it as well?"

"Well… I mean, no… but-"

"Natsuki…"

"Don't look at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like you're better than me."

Whether or not Yuri was better than Natsuki was a debatable point, but even Yuri had enough social skills to decide now probably wasn't the best time to pitch her argument about it.

"I don't think I'm better than you."

"You do! You're thinking less of me, I can see it all over your face."

"I always look like this!" Yuri insisted, before then blushing. "Wait, no, I didn't mean it like that. I meant I don't think any less of you!"

"Whatever."

Natsuki inched further away from her again. She still had her knees in front of her face, but did appear to have stopped crying, which Yuri counted as at least a small victory on her part.

"I think you should tell one of the teachers."

"I think you should mind your own damn business," she shot back.

Yuri winced at Natsuki's tone, but carried on.

"What about Miss Satchely?"

Miss Satchley was their shared English teacher, and the one whose classroom they used when hosting the Literature Club. She was a favorite and personal friend of all the members in the group, and was kind enough to let Natsuki hide her manga collection in her closet.

"It's nothing to do with her."

"She would understand! You _need_ to tell somebody about it."

Natsuki let out a mix between a sigh and a groan.

"Why couldn't you just let this go?"

She suddenly sounded more upset than she was angry.

Yuri gave a sad smile.

"Because you're my friend and I care about you."

"Well I don't care about you!"

The conversation stopped so suddenly, a record scratch might have played.

Yuri's expression deepened.

"You don't mean that."

"Yes I do!"

" _Natsuki is just being defensive,"_ she reminded herself.

Neither the less, she could still feel a swelling ball of anxiety in the pit of her stomach.

"If you didn't care about me, or at least partially enjoy my company, you wouldn't have come round tonight."

"You're really wondering why I would take any opportunity to leave my house?"

It took a second for Yuri to piece together the meaning of Natsuki's wording.

"Oh…"

That stung. That definitely stung.

A new air settled over the room.

Yuri felt what, sorrow? Anger? Hurt?

Yes, that was it. Natsuki's words hurt her. Yuri didn't have many friends, and so didn't often experience the feeling of having somebody she held close say something deliberately hurtful.

She was grateful of Natsuki and the role she provided in her life, but if this was the kind of feeling she was to expect from arguing…

Maybe having close friends wasn't for her.

"Well, even if you don't care about me…" Yuri tried, "I still care about you, and I want to make sure you're safe."

"I _do_ care about you."

Again, Yuri's thought process came to a screeching halt.

"Owwa!?" she spluttered. "But I thought you just said…?"

"Shut up, Yuri," Natsuki groaned. "You know what I mean. You're one of my best friends."

Like pouring water over a fire, Yuri felt a air of coolness over spread over the ball of anxiety growing inside her. It soaked it, relaxed it, and eventually dissolved it.

She gave an uneasy smile.

"You're one of my best friends, too."

Without thinking, Yuri moved forward again and sealed the distance between them. She wrapped one arm around Natsuki's legs and the other around her shoulder. Natsuki didn't let on, but also noticeably didn't fight, either.

"My parents will be home in a few hours. If you want I could ask them if you could stay another few nights?" she said quietly.

Natsuki shook her head.

"My dad wouldn't like me staying out longer than he gave me permission for."

A sudden fire of temper sparked in Yuri's heart.

Turns out she did actually care about Natsuki, who knew?

"If you stay until Monday, and then we go straight into school and tell Miss Satchely? That way you don't have to go home and see him!"

"I have all my stuff at home, though."

Yuri picked up on the fact Natsuki was no longer arguing against telling a teacher. She had to choose her next words carefully.

"Well… I'm sure that Monika could get you a spare uniform, or a permission slip. She's a prefect, after all."

"I guess."

Natsuki's voice was deflated and quiet. It was a stark contrast to the usual aggression the girl showed, and it wasn't one Yuri enjoyed.

She sighed, and pulled Natsuki closer.

"Your boobs are suffocating me."

"Awhh!"

Yuri violently released the girl and backed up a few inches, blushing.

Natsuki wiped the tears from her eyes, and appeared to be lightly chuckling to herself.

"Like I said, if you tell anybody you saw me cry, you know what'll happen."

Yuri nodded.

"Of course."

"So are we gonna watch this dumb horror movie or what?"

Yuri smiled at the girls returned enthusiasm. But on second thought, maybe a jump scare horror movie wasn't the best thing to put Natsuki through right now.

"We could watch something else, if you prefer?"

"Do you have the CrunchyRoll app?"

Out of nowhere Yuri found herself giggling.

After all this, and the poor girl was still just wanting to watch anime.

Natsuki blushed, and attempted again to hide her face. Yuri pulled the girl yet again into a hug. Although she would later deny it, not only did Natsuki not fight against the hug, she even slightly edged into it.

Although the conversation would turn to a more lighthearted subject eventually, the two high school girls remained in this position for the majority of the night, feeling safe in each others embrace.


End file.
